


steam engines

by kurgaya



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Don't copy to another site, Drabble, Gen, Humor, Parental Roy Mustang
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:35:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27698384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kurgaya/pseuds/kurgaya
Summary: Roy doesn’t know much about trains, but he imagines the cannon sitting on the coal pile is a little out-of-place. And knowing the Fullmetal Alchemist, the emphasis is onlittle.[Manga Chapter 4: Battle on the Train]
Relationships: Edward Elric & Roy Mustang
Comments: 11
Kudos: 130





	steam engines

**Author's Note:**

> I love this scene in the manga so I wanted to try my hand at exploring these characters for the first time :)

The train slogs into the station with a sufferance Roy’s come to expect from those who interact with the Fullmetal Alchemist. The engine car _cl-clunks_ and grinds to a stop, sighing brown-grey smoke into East City station. Behind it, the passenger cars bounce against one another before reaching a grateful stop, and Roy notes, with faint curiosity, that the cars are sopping wet. He would guess the train burst through a sudden shower on the outskirts of the city, except Roy’s been in East City all week and it hasn’t rained. Water also seems to be pouring out from _inside_ the carriages, but that could simply be the passengers’ tears of relief as they safely reach the city. Military officers rush to secure the train, and doctors linger on the platform with their briefcases. Roy focuses his attention on the tender car instead, and the humongous pipe sticking out from the top. The pipe slams into the next car and, yes, he can see where it ends like the barrel of a shotgun through the window.

Roy doesn’t know much about trains, but he imagines that isn’t supposed to be there.

The cannon sitting on the coal pile looks a littleout-of-place, too, and knowing the Fullmetal Alchemist, the emphasis is on _little_.

Fullmetal can’t be far. A mess like this has his signature all over it, and he _was_ listed as on-board. It will probably do to find General Halcrow as well, and ensure that his family is safe. The fall-out of an extremist group murdering a high-ranking military officer _would_ be a mess, but the fall-out from Fullmetal doing absolutely anything is worse. Lieutenant General Grumman can handle Halcrow and the Blue Squad. Roy’s got his hands full already, and that’s without Fullmetal’s leash.

He spots Alphonse first. “There’s Alphonse, sir,” Hawkeye says, just in case he hadn’t noticed the six-foot tall suit of armour; and this is immediately followed by Havoc’s joyful call of, “Hey kid, over here!”

Alphonse clanks towards them. He’s also dripping wet - but he hardly notices. There’s a collection of circular scuff-marks on his chest-plate that look as though they once were smoking, and Roy sighs. He hopes the boy isn’t hurt - but can anything hurt twenty kilograms of iron and steel?

“Colonel! All the passengers are safe,” Alphonse greets.

“I’m glad to hear it,” Roy says. The paperwork would have been gruelling. “Where’s your brother?”

Fullmetal appears as though beckoned, but Roy doesn’t kid himself into thinking he has any say in the matter. Fullmetal hops down from the tender car (as one does) and brushes coal from his coat. He’s almost as easy to spot as Alphonse with his red coat, golden hair, and positively _cheery_ disposition as he marches over to Roy and the officers.

“Yo Colonel, you here to make things worse?”

Havoc cough-laughs around his cigarette. Hawkeye’s too busy exchanging pleasantries with Alphonse to inform Fullmetal of her approval. Luckily for Roy.

Ah, the joys of teenagers. “Fullmetal. Pleasure to see you as always.”

“Can’t say the same about you. Hey Lieutenant, Second Lieutenant. Your guy’s half-drowned in the first car.” Fullmetal jabs a thumb over his shoulder. A small squad of soldiers are wrestling a burly man with an eyepatch and the remnants of an automail arm onto the platform. He looks remarkably fierce.

“Couldn’t keep your nose out of it, Fullmetal?” Roy teases. The day Fullmetal isn’t at the heart of his problems is the day Roy hands in his stars.

“Kinda hard not to with a gun in your face,” Fullmetal gripes. “He’s a total pushover though. Even you could handle him.”

Roy winces. It’s a miracle the Elric brothers have survived this long. He likes to think he has a hand in keeping the boys safe, but the cost of his altruism is high. It’s a miracle his _pride_ has survived this long. “And what of the train?”

The train in question is attracting an awful lot of attention from the station-dwellers. Adults and children alike gawk at the cannon and the water steadily gushing from the carriages. The rescued passengers gather like sheep amongst the watchful military blue. As Alphonse reported, none of them appeared to be harmed, but thank god Roy can delegate clean-up to the privates. Or better yet, the police.

Fullmetal shrugs. “I’ll fix it, no biggie. A bit of water never hurt anyone.”

In an alchemist’s hands, ‘a bit of water’ could hurt everyone. Roy agrees anyway, because they both know that.

A yell from down the platform waylays their bickering. Hawkeye’s gun is drawn before Roy swivels around, and Havoc is only a moment slower. The eye-patched man looms over two bloodied soldiers, and the rope-restraints fall to tatters around him. A six-inch blade protrudes from the shattered end of his automail, which is both a marvel and something the soldiers should have searched for.

“Whoa, it’s retractable,” Fullmetal says.

“I do have eyes, Fullmetal,” says Roy. He slides on his ignition gloves and _snaps!_ before the extremist can escape, and they all watch disinterestedly as the automail, eyepatch, and mad-dog expression burst into flame.

It’s only a small flame, just enough to cinder. Several of the privates startle like anxious cats. Many of the passengers and station-dwells scream.

“Sheesh,” Fullmetal says, and his expression twists in sympathy. His is the only one. Havoc takes a long drag of his cigarette. Hawkeye re-holsters her gun. Alphonse’s helmet is incapable of even basic expression, regardless of his feelings on the matter.

Fullmetal tears his eyes from the now-smouldering extremist. He frowns up at Roy, and everytime he does is a haunting reminder of his age. “Overkill, much?”

“You flooded a train.”

“Well _yeah_ , but -”

“Pot, kettle,” Roy says, and Fullmetal’s sputtering is a ceaseless source of amusement. Petitioning for Fullmetal to join his team was one of the best (and worst) decisions Roy’s ever made. The entertainment is almost worth the aggravation of watching out for the boy. Smiling anyway, he motions for Havoc to assist with the re-restraint of their crook. “My alchemy has subtlety, Fullmetal. Yours could do with less… _lavish_.”

Fullmetal’s face reddens to match his coat. “There’s nothing lavish about my alchemy! We’re on totally different levels!”

Roy quirks an eyebrow. He likes to think the cannon sitting atop the tender car backdrops his incredulity perfectly. “Is that so? Then do enlighten me.”

“Mine’s art!”

Roy startles the rest of the privates by throwing his head back to laugh.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! All comments appreciated :)


End file.
